At first, I thought that was a faked photo, so weird did the dog look!

I notice in the same article they were talking about a "canine Samson"--a Dane/Newfoundland cross that was 37 inches at the shoulder and 276 pounds. While unquestionably a huge dog, he is far from the record. I believe the record for height is (or was) held by a Great Dane that was 42 or 43 inches at the withers, and the record for weight was an English Mastiff named Zorba that was 345 pounds at his peak. I have seen English Mastiffs in the 260+ pound range, and they are imposing indeed.

The above photo has been circulating for some time. Some internet sites brand it a fake. I am not sure. If the people and the horse are small, say the man is 5'3", the dog could be no more than 32 inches at the withers, which is big, but no bigger than many I have seen.

The dog is a Neapolitan Mastiff, not an English Mastiff, as is sometimes claimed. The Neapolitan Mastiffs tend to run appreciably smaller than Old English Mastiffs.